Calculated Risk. Janie Crouch

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      “Whose children are these, Cheryl?” He didn’t take the use of her first name lightly.

      Neither did she. “Why do you care, Tanner?”

      One of the women sitting across from Mrs. Andrews looked like she might speak up, but was given the stink eye so quickly she abruptly looked away.

      Why would Mrs. A be making such a big deal out of this if Bree wasn’t in more trouble? Why wouldn’t the older woman just say they were holding the babies while the mom was in the bathroom or at the gas station or wherever she was? Tanner would’ve believed that with no suspicion at all. The fact that Mrs. A refused to give any information was what made it suspicious.

      A husky feminine voice spoke behind him. “I’m through for the day, Cheryl. Thank you again so much for watch—”

      Tanner spun around to see the woman who hadn’t been far out of his thoughts since he’d watched her drive away over a week ago. His breath almost whistled through his teeth. She was definitely as beautiful as he remembered. The long brown hair falling around her shoulders made him want to reach out and touch it to see if it was as soft as it was in his dreams.

      “You.” Her big green eyes widened, and the small smile faded from her face. Tension instantly ratcheted through her slim body.

      He tilted his head to the side and raised an eyebrow. “Me.”

      “You two know each other?” Mrs. Andrews asked.

      Tanner nodded then looked back at Bree. “We met at the drugstore a few days ago, although I don’t think you got my name. Tanner Dempsey.”

      “Bree,” she whispered.

      “I remember. I was under the impression that you were in a hurry to get out of Risk Peak.”

      “I, um...” She looked over at Mrs. A. “I, um...”

      Mrs. Andrews stood with the now-quiet baby and walked over to stand beside her. “Bree was kind enough to come work for Dan and me. We needed some help around here.”

      There was definitely more to this story than was being given, evidenced by the silence surrounding them. But no one seemed to want to provide any details.

      “Tanner, got your dinner here,” Judy called out from behind him. “Mr. Andrews made country-fried steak just for you.”

      The Andrewses never let anyone forget that they’d lived in Georgia before moving to Colorado. This was probably the only place in the whole state where you could find genuine Southern cooking.

      Tanner studied the two women in front of him. Bree was reaching over to get the baby Mrs. Andrews was holding. This one was in pink.

      “Thanks for watching them, Mrs. Andrews,” she whispered before kissing the child’s fuzzy head.

      “Call me, Cheryl, sweetheart. We’ve already talked about that.”

      He crossed his arms over his chest. “Why does she get to call you Cheryl and I have to call you Mrs. Andrews?”

      She narrowed her eyes at him. “Because I haven’t known her since she was in diapers. And I didn’t have to take her out of a Sunday School class one time and swat her butt because she put a frog down Linda Dugas’s dress.”

      Tanner chuckled with everyone else. It wasn’t the only time he’d been dragged out of Sunday School class.

      And he was smart enough to know when a battle wasn’t going to be won head-on. He gave them both a nod. “Fine. I’ll go eat. There will be plenty of time to talk later.”

      Because he sure as hell wasn’t going anywhere. The exhaustion that had plagued him was gone. He ate his food, watching Bree pack up the babies and get ready to leave. The other women tried to get her to sit down and talk, but she didn’t seem interested. And she was very careful not to look over in his direction.

      This woman had trouble written all over her. Whether she was chasing it or it was chasing her remained to be seen.

      He grabbed Judy as she drifted by with a coffee cup, watching Bree walk out the door without once looking his way. “Is the new girl with the babies staying at one of the hotels?”

      Judy looked uncomfortable. “Actually, I’m not exactly sure where Bree is staying.”

      “It’s okay, Judy. I’ll talk to the officer.” Mrs. Andrews put her hand on Judy’s shoulder before sitting down across from Tanner.

      Tanner took another bite of his steak. “You going to threaten to snatch me out of Sunday School again? My mom might be a little shocked to get the call.”

      “I just don’t want Judy stuck in the middle of anything. You seem pretty interested in our new employee.”

      “My interest became piqued because you were dodging my questions.” He chewed his food. “That’s not something I’ve ever known you to do.”

      Mrs. Andrews let out a little sigh. “That girl wandered in here last week half a minute from a complete breakdown. She needed help, so we offered her a job. Nothing wrong with that.”

      Tanner took a sip of his coffee. “No, nothing wrong with that. Did she mention she and I met last week also, probably right before she came over here?”

      This was obviously news to Mrs. A. The older woman bent her head to study her nails. “No, she didn’t.”

      “I caught her shoplifting. Stuff for the babies, but Bree very definitely had no plans—and probably no means—of paying for it.”

      Mrs. A straightened in her seat, eyes narrowing. “Well, you just tell me how much it was and Dan and I will pay for it ourselves. I’ll go over and talk to Gary, and we can get it worked out.”

      “There’s no need. It was handled before she even got out of the store. So technically, no laws were broken. But the point is, she’s trouble. I’m not sure what kind yet, but I know we don’t have all the facts when it comes to that woman. Has she told you anything about herself?”

      “No. She keeps quiet. Does any work we ask her to and either keeps the babies with her or lets us hold them out front. She’s got quite a fan club now. Everybody wants to hold them. But Bree never really talks much to anyone.”

      All Tanner’s exhaustion was back. He rubbed a hand over his eyes. “And none of this seems unusual to you?”

      “She’s not a bad person, Tanner.”

      He gritted his teeth. “Let’s not forget that my father once felt that way about someone. That kid seemed young and innocent and helpless, too. Ended up costing Dad his life.”

      Mrs. Andrews reached out and took his hand on the table. “It’s not the same. That gang situation was trouble from the first moment he got involved. The people were bad seeds. That’s not what this is.”

      Wasn’t it? Not gang related, but definitely trouble.

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